Calm After the Storm
by telltalestars
Summary: Kaito and Maki share a tender moment under the stars. Post Chapter 4 spoilers.


51… 52… 53… 54…

With the night sky etched above them as their only witness, Maki trained methodically. Each push up was barely felt, being something the raven-haired girl had become accustomed to.

Being a trained assassin, the girl, while seeming incredibly slim, was very strong and agile. Running was easy, and she could hold a plank for a very long amount of time. Training like this barely did anything for her.

Was there even a point to 'training' now? Maki and Kaito had met earlier, continuing the routine as if nothing had happened, but the girl now knew the state the astronaut's health was in. The stomach-churning sound of him hacking up his lungs was still fresh in the assassin's mind, ringing through her ears when she lay in her dormitory room that night before their meeting. It threatened her with emotions she had never felt before, tears brimming in her eyes at the memory of Kaito's own blood dripping down his face.

77… 78… 79… 80...

With Shuichi now more or less taking a break from the pair, it left Maki and Kaito a lot more quieter between each other. Remembering the stunned look on his face at Kaito's harsh words during the last trial, she winces. Mio's horrifying death and Gonta's execution cut the dwindling group deeply, leaving the seven survivors unsteady. The unspoken horror that Gonta mentioned of the outside world scared Maki, but she swallowed it and hid that fear deep down inside.

Another issue scared her more than that at the moment. This strange need to protect the person laying to the right of her, it was foreign.

She rarely felt a need to protect.

97… 98… 99… 100.

Sighing, the red-clad girls rolls onto her back, sprawling on the cool lawn besides Kaito. While she trained, he had simply laid and watched the stars, completely wordless after his greeting. His purple coat was spread out on the grass, protecting his back from the dew that was beginning to form. The purple-haired boy lay with an arm tucked behind his head.

Her scarlet eyes glance over, wondering if he had been asleep this whole time. He wasn't one to be so silent, and she frowns, seeing his eyes still closed despite her finishing her training. Kaito was laying so still...

Was he still breathing? Maki panics slightly, sitting up quickly. She reaches her hand out to check the pulse on his neck, fearing the worst.

As if sensing her movement, Kaito opens his eyes, breathing in deeply. His angled lavender eyes meet her worried stare, and she blushes, her hand recoiling quickly.

"All done with training, Maki Roll?" His voice sounds rough from sleep, and he blinks, rubbing his eye with the back of his long hand. "Figured I'd just rest my eyes a moment, but I think I conked out..."

Sitting up slowly, he suddenly coughs, catching it with his fist quickly. The force of it makes Kaito's body lurch forwards. He draws his knee up, letting a second cough escape, struggling to remain in a straight sitting pose.

Maki watches in silence, a strange sense of pain overwhelming her heart at the sound. Smoothing her skirt, she shifts so that she kneels, passing the bottle of water from beside her on the lawn to him.

"Th-Thanks, Maki Roll…"

"How on earth can you continuously brush that off as nothing, Kaito?" Her words come out bitter and cold, the pain erupting from her heart. Memory of his blood fills her mind, overwhelming her senses to be reasonable. "You can't even sit up properly right now--"

Kaito dismisses her words with a wave of his hand, uncapping the water with his other hand and quickly gulping down almost half of it. A dribble of water tainted with pink blood leaks from his lips, and Maki frowns.

She had walked Kaito back to his dorm room on the night of the most recent trial, having to support him after he nearly collapsed on their way there. The memory of his arm slung across her shoulders, his blood dribbling down her chin, sends shivers down her spine.

He had been so weak, so vulnerable. No wonder she had a need to protect him, as well as a strange underlying connection to the boy.

Letting out a sigh of relief as the water washes down, he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand and lays back down with his arms behind his head. Glancing over, he notices her worried stare. "Maki Roll, I think you forget that I'm Kaito Momota, the Luminary of the Stars! I'll be fine, it'll go away eventually."

The purple haired man shoots her his winning smile, making her heart jolt and skip a beat. A pink blush creeps onto her face.

Pouting, Maki turns away, and a silence falls among them again for a few moments. The school grounds were very quiet tonight: no more Exisals moved, no crickets chirped, no wind blew. It was just Maki and Kaito's own breath and the sound of the grass crunching as Kaito rolls onto his side.

"Hey, Maki Roll."

She glances over, catching his eye. The purple-haired boy has his elbow propped up, chin resting on his hand. His loose-fitting shirt fell smoothly from his body, exposing his collar bone.

"Do ya care about me or somethin'?"

Her scarlet red eyes pierce his lavender ones, an act that would have intimidated anyone that wasn't Kaito. Her blush reddens, annoyance coating her voice. "Do you want to die?"

He smiles fondly, knowing she was all bark with no bite. He shuffles to the side, leaving room for her on his expansive jacket. "Wanna come and look at the stars for a little bit before you go back to your room tonight? It's getting pretty late."

Maki puffs her pink cheeks out, a no out of habit on the tip of her tongue, but she lays next to Kaito on his galaxy-coated jacket anyway. She is careful to leave space between him and her, folding her hands on her stomach. He rolls onto his back once more, sighing contently.

The stars really were beautiful. Countless numbers of them twinkle above, and Maki could only imagine the amount of galaxies out there. The light shine from them reflects in their eyes, and Maki sighs, relaxing.

Kaito coughs, breaking the silence and putting the assassin on edge again. The sound was wet and painful, and Maki winces as he tries to calm them down.

"Kaito--"

"I-I'm fine, Maki Roll! Trust me." Again, he dismisses her concerns, rubbing his chest and wincing. Her heart hurts as he tries to smile at her, pointing towards the sky. "Look, you can see the Centaurus constellation! If you look at that little star over there, to the left--"

"Kaito!" Maki shuts her eyes, anger and a deep sadness now seeping in. "Iamworried about you-- since the last trial you haven't gotten better! You k-keep coughing-- and you haven't spoken to Shuichi since--"

She swallows, her feelings rising to the surface. Tears brim her red eyes, and she squeezes them shut, willing them away. "Wh-what if you never get better?"

Maki was used to death: the memories of her past jobs fill her mind. Stabbing, shooting, poisoning: she had seen it all, been so accustomed to it all. Watching her classmates die, while saddening, she managed to brush aside. Why was she suddenly so concerned with the health of her friend? She should be used to this feeling.

The feeling of loss.

"Maki Roll…"

Maki hadn't noticed, but the tears fell freely now, rolling down her cheeks and dribbling onto his jacket. Kaito had rolled over, concern written on his face, watching her sniffle pitifully. Embarrassed, she turns her face away, but refuses to wipe the tears that slide down her porcelain skin.

Kaito hesitates before gently resting his hand on her cheek, using his thumb to wipe away her tears. Maki's heart stutters at this gentle gesture, and she slowly shifts, her scarlet red eyes meeting his concerned lavender ones.

"I'm sorry, Kaito--" She looks away, blubbering, her cheeks turning redder as the tears keep falling. She tries to push his hand away, sitting up in an attempt to leave.

"Don't, Maki." He suddenly sits up and grasps her wrist, his eyebrows knitting together. If Maki wanted, she could disentangle herself from his grip. "It's okay. Let it out if you need t--"

Kaito is interrupted with a wheeze from his throat, and he quickly breathes in before choking out a cough suddenly. He catches it with his free hand, turning away from Maki, and wipes it on the lawn with a disgusted look on his face.

Her heart breaks again at the sight.

"Why? Why do I feel this way? Why does it hurt to watch you do this--" Maki sobs, and suddenly turns towards him, the confusing feelings crashing over her all at once. Her hand crashes to the ground, pulling Kaito with it, and she shoves her face into his shoulder. Again, he hesitates, but lets go of her wrist to wrap his arms around the dark-haired girl's waist.

Maki wraps her arms around his neck, crying into his shoulder. She reveled in his warmth, the feeling of the smooth skin where his shoulder met his collarbone against her nose and cheek.

Pulling her carefully into his lap, Kaito gently rocks her, tightening his hug around her waist. His white shirt gets soaked with tears, through both layers, but he never moves. He shifts only slightly when her sobs turn into sniffles, resting his chin against her head, and she feels his spiky little beard poke her scalp.

"Feeling better, Maki Roll?" Kaito's voice comes out soft and husky, rubbing her back.

Maki slowly pulls away from his shoulder, embarrassed. The idiot had such a fond smile on his face. He strokes the corner of her eye with his thumb again, very gently, wiping away the last of her tears. Her cheeks are bright pink and blotchy.

"I'm not going anywhere, Maki Roll." His words are truthful, and spoken clearly. His eyes crease as he smiles wider.

"You have nothing to worry about. We're a team, hey? You, me and…" His smile falters, and Kaito's thumb stops moving for a moment.Shuichi. "You and me, Maki Roll."

Maki looks up into his eyes, her deep pools of dark red meeting fields of lavender purple. She felt her heart accelerate, noticing the close proximity between their faces. A strange haze seems to have fallen over the two of them.

"Your skin, Maki… so soft…" Kaito's voice comes out as a soft whisper, full of awe, and his hands feel cold under the burn of the blush of her cheeks.

The assassin wasn't sure how long they had sat there, her sitting in his lap with her arms around his neck still, simply looking into his eyes. It felt as if the world had stopped rotating for the two of them. Had it been anyone else, she would be uncomfortable, pushing the person off and walking away.

But this was Kaito.

She leans forward, hesitantly, before gently pressing her lips against his. The kiss is short, barely long enough for the astronaut to react, before she draws herself away again. This time, she pulls herself out of his arms.

"Thank you, Kaito."

She stands, smoothing her uniform and hair, before walking away, leaving the astronaut slightly stunned. He carefully presses his fingers to his lips, remembering the soft feeling.

The stars remained their only witness, watching Maki walk away back the her dorm as she let the tears fall freely again.


End file.
